Former President Goodluck Jonathan has described the reinstatement of Mr. Abdulrasheed Maina, former boss of the Pension Reform Task Team (PRTT), as a bold symptom that the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led government has delivered more corruption than change to Nigerians.
Jonathan stated this in a press statement issued on his behalf by his former Special Assistant on New Media, Reno Omokri.
The statement was a response to an interview by the APC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi.
In the interview, Abdullahi was quoted to have said that Maina is a legacy of former President Jonathan and the Peoples Democratic Party.
The APC spokesman was also quoted as having said: “David Mark (former Senate President) declared at a plenary that the then President Goodluck Jonathan should choose between Maina and the National Assembly.”
“However, Jonathan branded Abdullahi’s claims as historical a major feature of the dishonest character of the APC has become known for.
“Rather than living up to its propagandized anti corruption pretensions, the Muhammadu Buhari led APC administration through the current Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, wrote a memo to the Federal Civil Service Commission advising them to reinstate the fugitive Maina. This is an indisputable fact.
“After this atrocious act by Malami, the Buhari administration recalled Abdulrasheed Maina, reinstated him and gave him double promotion.
“When Premium Times blew the lid off the scandal, the Maina family gave a press conference where they stated that their son was invited by the Buhari administration to help it deliver on its change agenda.
“It was also discovered that Abdulrasheed Maina had printed posters to contest to be the next Borno state Governor under the banner of the APC.
“More than two weeks after the Maina family press conference, the Buhari administration is yet to deny their assertions.
“Nigerians may recall that the Maina family threatened that they would ‘expose the cabal in the Presidency’ if they don’t back off Maina.
“It would also be recalled that Junaid Mohammed revealed that Abdulrasheed Maina was moving about with armed security escorts.
“Also, after President Buhari denied that he was aware of the Maina affair, his own Head of Service wrote a memo reminding him that she had warned him in person about reinstating Maina BEFORE the act, proving that the President lied.
“Rather than reward this dutiful public servant, the Buhari administration tried to bully her in an attempt by the President’s Chief of Staff which was caught on camera.
“So again, I ask Bolaji Abdullahi how Maina can be a legacy of Jonathan and the PDP in view of the above indisputable facts?
“If at all anybody is a legacy of the PDP, that person is no other than Bolaji Abdullahi himself who was brought to national limelight by the PDP administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan who gave him a ministerial position.
“He is now spokesman of the APC today, a typical trait of an unprincipled AGIP (Any Government In Power) politician.
“We are aware that the APC administration is embarrassed by its one day one scandal government.
“Whether it is Maina, the NNPC $25 billion scam, Babachir grass cutter scam, Amina Mohammed’s $300 million timber scandal, the ₦700 million ministry of mines and steel website, Buratai’s Dubai house, the Ikoyi billions, the budget padding scandal, the missing budget scandal, no paracetamol in State House Clinic scandal, the fact remains that the Buhari administration has delivered more CORRUPTION than CHANGE to the Nigerian people.
“We therefore ask Bolaji Abdullahi and the APC to keep their beloved Maina and leave former President Jonathan and the PDP out of their love affair with him.”
